20th February [1848, 1859 and 1861]

Mary Brewster, SUNDAY [Feb.] 20th [1848]: “First and middle light breezes from N with good weather. Latter veering from North to NE — with a head sea which keeps the ship bobling up and down. Saw a small schooner some 6 miles off. Nothing new. LAT. 22.10 LONG. 61.38….”

Mary Lawrence, [Sun.] FEBRUARY 20 [1859]: “Captain Allen left today for Man-of-War Bay, and as Samuel saw a ship going in there from below, he decided to take a boat in tow and go down in the schooner. A man whom we found on board after leaving the Islands by the name John Jones, an assumed one probably, has asked and obtained leave to go to San Francisco with Captain Allen. He says he ran away from an English man-of-war then in port, the Calypso, and he dares not go back to the Islands again for fear of being apprehended. I sent several letters to San Francisco by Captain Allen. Wrote two sheets to mt father and mother, one to Cynthia, one to George, and a note to James, one to S.P. Bourne, one to Sarah, and one to Joseph and Harriet, which I hope they may all receive in due time. Samuel arrived home about 8 P.M.; found that ship to be the Scotland, Saw Captain Weeks and family ashore. He has taken 19 barrels since he left here; was bound in for his wood and going to leave. Ships are doing nothing below now. The Paulina took a whale a few days since. Had the second mate’s and one man’s legs broken and another man killed. The Benjamin Rush’s cooper and one or more of his boatsteerer’s stole a boat, took another cooper and boatsteerer from Euphrates, and cleared in the night for parts unknown. The following day the ships started in pursuit of them. Captain Allen sent Minnie by Samuel a fishline wound on a reel with a sinker and two hooks attached to it, which pleased her very much, as she employs herself a great deal in fishing from the stern. She has caught a number of fish herself. We sent our boats around to tow the Dromo this morning out of Clark’s into the main lagoon. After getting into the channel, he let go his anchor; and this afternoon when the tide turned, he got under way to come down and got ashore. He hopes to get off by tonight’s tide if possible. Samuel went to his assistance soon after his arrival from below.

Eliza Williams, [Fri.] February 18th [1861]: “The Callao has come over and anchored close by. My Husband and Willie have been aboard. While they were there, they saw a gam of Whales not far off. My Husband sent Willie home and then Capt. Fuller and he went down to try and strike a Whale. My Husband struck one and the Whales brought his flukes down on the head of the boat and stove [damaged] it quite badly, so that they had to come right aboard and had to bail all the time. The iron [harpoon] broke, and the Whales went off. One of the Callao’s boats was stove a little by coming in contact with the first boat.”